How unique is the tiger beetle fauna (Coleoptera,Cicindelidae) of the Balkan Peninsula?

The tiger beetle fauna of the Balkan Peninsula is one of the richest in Europe and includes 19 species or 41% of the European tiger beetle fauna. Assembled by their biogeographical origins, the Balkan tiger beetle species fall into 14 different groups that include, Mediterranean, Middle Oriental, Central Asiatic, Euro-Siberian, South and East European, Pannonian-Sarmatian, West Palaearctic, Turano-European and Afrotropico Indo-Mediterranean species. The Mediterranean Sclerophyl and the Pontian Steppe are the Balkan biogeographical provinces with the highest species richness, while the Balkan Highlands has the lowest Cicindelidae diversity. Most species are restricted to single habitat types in lowland areas of the Balkan Peninsula and only Calomera aulica aulica and Calomera littoralis nemoralis occur in respectively 3 and 4 different types of habitat. About 60% of all Balkan Cicindelidae species are found in habitats potentially endangered by human activity.     

Ecological preferences of charophytes in Serbia in relation to habitat type and other aquatic macrophytes

The study presented is an attempt to explain variance in charophyte presence for the territory of Serbia by using several environmental parameters and to find a connection between certain species of charophytes and aquatic macrophytes found growing with them. Environmental parameters used were habitat type, water depth, altitude and four bioclimatic parameters extracted from the WorldClim set of global climate layers. The data used are an outcome of gathering all available literature and herbarium data on charophytes in Serbia ending with the first decade of twenty-first century, and were not systematically collected for the purpose of this study. Of 22 analyzed charophytes, 8 of them are in endangered and 4 in vulnerable IUCN threat categories for the Balkan region. The analyses performed were indicator species analysis (ISA), canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) and partial canonical correspondence analysis (pCCA). ISA distinguished four species of Charophyta as indicators of specific habitat types. Percentages of variance explained were 18.98% and 19.91% for CCA and pCCA, respectively. Depth and altitude were shown to be the most significant environmental factors explaining charophyte occurrence.     

巴尔干半岛现生轮藻植物综述

欧洲东南部巴尔干轮藻植物由于其产地生境的差异及以镶嵌状分布的模式,具有较高的生物分异度,计有44种,归属于现生属Nitella(10),Tolypella(4),Nitellopsis(1),Lychnothamnus(1),Lamprothamnium(1) and Chara(27).巴尔干半岛产有4种土著类型Chara rohlenae,Chara ohridana,Chara corfuensis and Chara visianii.建立1新种Chara hydropitys.该地区轮藻植物分布不均衡,部分类型例如Chara strigosa,Chara kokeilii,Chara muscosa,Chara fragifera,Chara imperfecta,Lychnothamnus barbatus为稀有品种,仅在少数地点发现.巴尔干地区轮藻植物之丰富多彩远远超过已知的程度,有待于深入研究.     

Biogeography of freshwater fishes of the Balkan Peninsula

Delineating biogeographical regions is a critical step towards the establishment and evaluation of conservation priorities. In the present study, we analysed the distribution patterns of the freshwater fish of an understudied European biodiversity hotspot, the Balkan Peninsula. Based on the most extensive available database of native freshwater fish species distributions, we performed a hierarchical clustering analysis to identify the major biogeographical regions of the Balkan Peninsula. We also highlighted the ‘hottest hotspots’ of freshwater fish diversity across the delimited biogeographical regions by describing the patterns of species richness, endemic and vulnerable species; indicator species were also determined. The bioregionalisation scheme consisted of eight groups of drainage basins that correspond to distinct regions of the Balkan Peninsula. Overall, the delineated biogeographical regions varied in terms of species richness, endemism, vulnerability (i.e. extinction threats) and indicator species composition. From a conservation perspective, this study emphasises the prioritisation of areas characterised by high levels of irreplaceability (endemism) and vulnerability (i.e. the Attikobeotia region, Ionian Sea and Prespa Lakes) and stresses the necessity of implementing a network of protected freshwater areas across the Balkan Peninsula.     

Testing the efficiency of nested barriers to dispersal in the Mediterranean high mountain plant Edraianthus graminifolius (Campanulaceae)

Due to strong spatial heterogeneity and limited Pleistocene glaciation, the Balkan Peninsula is a major European biodiversity hot spot. Surprisingly little, however, is known about patterns and processes of intraspecific diversification of its biota in general and of high‐altitude species in particular. A well‐suited system to test hypotheses with respect to various isolating factors acting at different geographic scales and to explore full‐range phylogeographic patterns on the Balkan Peninsula is Edraianthus graminifolius (Campanulaceae), distributed in the western Balkan mountain systems, the southwestern Carpathians and the Apennine Peninsula. To this end, we used a dense population sampling and employed amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) markers and plastid DNA sequences supplemented by ecological niche modelling. The strongest splits were inferred to separate southern and northern Balkan populations from the central ones, from where range extension occurred to the Carpathians and, in more recent times, once or twice to the Apennine Peninsula. The three genetic groups in the western Balkan Peninsula were remarkably congruent among molecular markers, suggesting that the barriers to gene flow acted over long time periods facilitating allopatric differentiation. Each main group of Balkan populations contained genetically and geographically distinct subgroups, which likely are the result of local refugia during warmer periods. Evidently, the topographically highly complex and during the Last Glacial Maximum only locally glaciated Balkan Peninsula is a hot spot of species richness and endemism as well as a sanctuary of intraspecific genetic diversity, even if the underlying causes remain insufficiently understood.     

Phylogenetic relationships and biogeography of Podarcis species from the Balkan Peninsula, by bayesian and maximum likelihood analyses of mitochondrial DNA sequences

Wall lizards of the genus Podarcis (Sauria, Lacertidae) comprise 17 currently recognized species in southern Europe, where they are the predominant nonavian reptile group. The taxonomy of Podarcis is complex and unstable. Based on DNA sequence data, the species of Podarcis falls into four main groups that have substantial geographic coherence (Western island group, southwestern group, Italian group, and Balkan Peninsula group). The Balkan Peninsula species are divided into two subgroups: the subgroup of P. taurica (P. taurica, P. milensis, P. gaigeae, and perhaps P. melisellensis), and the subgroup of P. erhardii (P. erhardii and P. peloponnesiaca). In the present study, the question of phylogenetic relationships among the species of Podarcis encountered in the Balkan Peninsula was addressed using partial mtDNA sequences for cytochrome b (cyt b) and 16S rRNA (16S). The data support the monophyly of Podarcis and suggest that there are three phylogenetic clades: the clade A (P. taurica, P. gaigeae, P. milensis, and P. melisellensis); the clade B (P. erhardii and P. peloponnesiaca), and the clade C (P. muralis and P. sicula). By examining intraspecific relationships it was found that extant populations of P. erhardii are paraphyletic. Furthermore, subspecies previously defined on the basis of morphological characteristics do not correspond to different molecular phylogenetic clades, suggesting that their status should be reconsidered. The distinct geographic distribution of the major clades of the phylogenetic tree and its topology suggest a spatial and temporal sequence of phylogenetic separations that coincide with some major paleogeographic separations during the geological history of the Aegean Sea. The results stress the need for a reconsideration of the evolutionary history of Balkan Podarcis species and help overcome difficulties that classical taxonomy has encountered at both the species and subspecies level.     

Quantitative phytogeography of the Italian Beech Forests

This paper presents a numerical analysis of the distribution patterns in Europe and adjoining regions of 242 vascular plant species occurring in the Italian beech forests. The classification of a matrix of species and of 531 Operational Geographic Units (OGUs) led to recognition of 15 different phytogeographic elements (chorotypes). The joint distribution of the species belonging to each chorotype is shown by a chorogram, which is a geographic map obtained by computer processing of the distributional data. Some of the chorograms show the main distributional centers for the beechwood flora in southern Europe: northwestern Balkan Peninsula and eastern Alps, southern Balkan Peninsula, Maritime Alps, northern Apennines, southern Apennines. Only 20% of the species are limited to narrow areas in southern Europe, and were not able to expand considerably their ranges in postglacial times. Migration from the refugia and colonization of vast areas in central and northern Europe led to intensive speciation phenomena, occurring chiefly through the formation of neopolyploid species. Several south European, narrow-ranging species, can be considered as palaeopolyploids with relict character. There is a good relationship between distribution and ecology of the chorotypes.Abbreviations OGU Operational Geographic Unit - OGS Operational Geographic Set - OCS Operational Character Set     

Application of the IUCN Red Listing system to setting species targets for conservation planning purposes

Biodiversity targets, or estimates of the quantities of biodiversity features that should be conserved in a region, are fundamental to systematic conservation planning. We propose that targets for species should be based on the quantitative thresholds developed for the Vulnerable category of the IUCN Red List system, thereby avoiding future listings of species in an IUCN Red List threat category or an increase in the extinction risk, or ultimate extinction, of species already listed as threatened. Examples of this approach are presented for case studies from South Africa, including threatened taxa listed under the IUCN Red List criteria of A to D, a species listed as Near Threatened, a species of conservation concern due to its rarity, and one species in need of recovery. The method gives rise to multiple representation targets, an improvement on the often used single representation targets that are inadequate for long term maintenance of biodiversity or the arbitrary multiple representation and percentage targets that are sometimes adopted. Through the implementation of the resulting conservation plan, these targets will ensure that the conservation status of threatened species do not worsen over time by qualifying for higher categories of threat and may actually improve their conservation status by eliminating the threat of habitat loss and stabilizing population declines. The positive attributes ascribed to the IUCN Red List system, and therefore to the species targets arising from this approach, are important when justifying decisions that limit land uses known to be detrimental to biodiversity.     

Pleistocene divergence of Dinaric Drusus endemics (Trichoptera, Limnephilidae) in multiple microrefugia within the Balkan Peninsula

The Balkan Peninsula is one of three major European refugial areas. It has high biodiversity and endemism, but data on the age and origin of its fauna, especially endemics, are limited. Mitochondrial sequence data (COI and 16S genes) were used to study the population structure and phylogeography of the caddisfly Drusus croaticus and the phylogeny and divergence of seven other Drusus species, mostly range-restricted endemics of the Dinaric region of the Balkan Peninsula. The divergence of D. croaticus populations in Croatia and allopatric Drusus species in Bosnia dated to the Pleistocene, showing the importance of this time period for the origin and diversification of Balkan endemic taxa. The divergence of more distantly related species dated to the Late Miocene/Early Pliocene. Population genetic and phylogeographic analysis of 115 individuals from 11 populations of D. croaticus revealed a high level of genetic differentiation and absence of gene flow between populations separated by more than 10 km. The existence of allopatrically fragmented lineages in D. croaticus and the endemic Bosnian species is most likely the result of long-term isolation in multiple microrefugia, probably due to the specific habitat requirements and life-history traits of Drusinae coupled with the topographic complexity and historical changes in geomorphology of the region. Overall, these findings shed light on the processes generating the high genetic complexity of this refugial region that parallels the 'refugia within refugia' pattern widely reported from the Iberian refugium.     

Dry calcareous grasslands from two neighboring biogeographic regions: relationship between plant traits and rarity

European dry grasslands formed of the Festuco-Brometea type are among the most diverse plant communities within agricultural landscapes. We examined floristic composition, functional trait structure and threatened species occurrence in grasslands of this type from in two distinct biogeographic regions, Dinaric (NW Balkan) and the Central European. In the Central European region this type of grassland is threatened by a decline in traditional extensive management. We tested, if differences in the level of threat between regions are matched by differences in community-weighted means for resource use strategy traits and occurrence of Red List (threatened) species. We then tested if threatened species differed in their traits from other species and if threatened species richness was related to CWM for resource use strategy traits. The communities from the Central European region had significantly higher SLA and lower LDMC, which perhaps reflects an increase in intensive agriculture promoting fast-growing species. Threatened species occurrence did not differ significantly between regions, but threatened species richness was significantly negatively correlated with CWM for height and SLA. This may suggest that threatened species are less likely to occur in high productivity communities where light competition is intense. This study provides initial evidence that changes in CWM for resource use strategy traits may provide a useful means for predicting threatened species loss in dry grassland ecosystems.     

Diversity,knowledge and spatial distribution of the vascular flora of Croatia

The Balkan Peninsula is recognized as an important centre of plant diversity. Despite the fact that Croatia contains more than 50% of all Balkan species of vascular flora, the knowledge of the spatial distribution, α-diversity and relation to the conservation efforts have never been summarized and presented. A spatial analysis was performed on several data-sets containing a number of records and a number of species per grid cell. Results show that the Croatian flora consists of 4507 species and 1159 subspecies. The residuals around the linear regression used as a measure of the species richness indicate that Croatia had the highest residual value among the 40 European countries sampled and highest stress on the biodiversity value of the Apennine, the Iberian and the Balkan peninsulas. On the basis of half a million findings and their spatial distributions, we observed that within one grid cell (35 km²) 542 species could be expected. A number of records based on the herbarium specimens, literature and field observation and related spatial distribution were discussed. The spatial distribution of α-diversity indicates that the national hot spots were more consistent with the important plant areas network than with the network of officially protected areas.     

Croatian mayflies (Insecta,Ephemeroptera): species diversity and distribution patterns

Knowledge of the mayfly biodiversity in the Balkan Peninsula is still far from complete. Compared to the neighbouring countries, the mayfly fauna in Croatia is very poorly known. Situated at the crossroads of central and Mediterranean Europe and the Balkan Peninsula, Croatia is divided into two ecoregions: Dinaric western Balkan and Pannonian lowland. Mayflies were sampled between 2003 and 2013 at 171 sites, and a total of 66 species was recorded. Combined with the literature data, the Croatian mayfly fauna reached a total of 79 taxa. Of these, 29 species were recorded for the first time in Croatia while 15 species were not previously recorded in Dinaric western Balkan ecoregion. Based on the mayfly assemblage, sampling sites were first structured by ecoregion and then by habitat type. In comparison with the surrounding countries, the Croatian mayfly fauna is the most similar to the Hungarian and Bosnian fauna. Some morphologically interesting taxa such as Baetis cf. nubecularis Eaton, 1898 and Rhithrogena from the diaphana group were recorded. Ephemera cf. parnassiana Demoulin, 1958, the species previously recorded only from Greece, was also recorded.     

Using Red List Indices to measure progress towards the 2010 target and beyond

The World Conservation Union (IUCN) Red List is widely recognized as the most authoritative and objective system for classifying species by their risk of extinction. Red List Indices (RLIs) illustrate the relative rate at which a particular set of species change in overall threat status (i.e. projected relative extinction-risk), based on population and range size and trends as quantified by Red List categories. RLIs can be calculated for any representative set of species that has been fully assessed at least twice. They are based on the number of species in each Red List category, and the number changing categories between assessments as a result of genuine improvement or deterioration in status. RLIs show a fairly coarse level of resolution, but for fully assessed taxonomic groups they are highly representative, being based on information from a high proportion of species worldwide. The RLI for the world's birds shows that that their overall threat status has deteriorated steadily during the years 1988-2004 in all biogeographic realms and ecosystems. A preliminary RLI for amphibians for 1980-2004 shows similar rates of decline. RLIs are in development for other groups. In addition, a sampled index is being developed, based on a stratified sample of species from all major taxonomic groups, realms and ecosystems. This will provide extinction-risk trends that are more representative of all biodiversity.     

Phylogeography of a subalpine tall‐herb Ranunculus platanifolius (Ranunculaceae) reveals two main genetic lineages in the European mountains

A phylogeographical analysis of Ranunculus platanifolius, a typical European subalpine tall‐herb species, indicates the existence of two main genetic lineages based on amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) markers. One group comprises populations from the Balkan Peninsula and the south‐eastern Carpathians and the other includes the remaining part of the range of the species, encompassing the western Carpathians, Sudetes, Alps, Pyrenees and Scandinavia. The main phylogeographical break observed in this species runs across the Carpathians and separates the main parts of this range (western and south‐eastern Carpathians), supporting a distinct glacial history of populations in these areas. The high genetic similarity of the Balkan Peninsula and south‐eastern Carpathian populations could indicate a common glacial refugium for these contemporarily isolated areas of species distribution. The western and northern part of the species range displays an additional weak differentiation into regional phylogeographical groups, which could have been shaped by isolation in glacial refugia or even by a postglacial isolation. The observed weak phylogeographical structure could also be linked with ecological requirements, allowing survival along streams in relatively low, forested mountain ranges. © 2013 The Linnean Society of London     

Assessing changes in the conservation status of threatened Brazilian vertebrates

Threatened species assessments are one of the tools used to evaluate the degree of human impact on biodiversity, particularly in the assignment of extinction probabilities to individual species. Heavily altered habitats or biomes harbor a high proportion of the threatened species that have been assessed globally—80% of all of threatened species in IUCN’s Red List owe their poor status at least partly to the loss of habitat. Some taxonomic groups, however, may be well represented in the Red Lists either because they are naturally more sensitive to the most pervasive threats, or simply because they have been better studied. Here we look at the threat patterns on a temporal scale of Brazilian animal species included in the IUCN Red List, evaluating the hypotheses that directions of changes in red list status can be explained by the increase in scientific knowledge or by actual changes in threat factors. We analyzed changes in patterns of threatened vertebrates in IUCN’s list between 2002 and 2006. During that period, 120 species changed their status. 42 of these changes referred to inclusions and 78 to changes of threat category. For the latter group, 23 had their status upgraded to categories of higher threat, and 55 downgraded to others of lower threat. Most of the downgrades were caused by increase in scientific knowledge, while most of the upgrades resulted from the deterioration of the environmental conditions.     

Terpene chemodiversity of relict conifers Picea omorika, Pinus heldreichii, and Pinus peuce, endemic to Balkan

Terpenes are often used as ecological and chemotaxonomic markers of plant species, as well as for estimation of geographic variability. Essential oils of relic and Balkan endemic/subendemic conifers, Picea omorika, Pinus heldreichii, and P. peuce, in central part of Balkan Peninsula (Serbia and Montenegro), on the level of terpene classes and common terpene compounds were investigated. In finding terpene combinations, which could show the best diversity between species and their natural populations, several statistical methods were applied. Apart from the content of different terpene classes (P. omorika has the most abundant O-containing monoterpenes and sesquiterpenes; P. heldreichii and P. peuce have the largest abundance of sesquiterpene and monoterpene hydrocarbons, resp.), the species are clearly separated according to terpene profile with 22 common compounds. But, divergences in their populations were established only in combination of several compounds (specific for each species), and they were found to be the results of geomorphologic, climatic, and genetic factors. We found similarities between investigated species and some taxa from literature with respect to terpene composition, possibly due to hybridization and phylogenetic relations. Obtained results are also important regarding to chemotaxonomy, biogeography, phylogeny, and evolution of these taxa.     

Standing at the Gateway to Europe - The Genetic Structure of Western Balkan Populations Based on Autosomal and Haploid Markers

Contemporary inhabitants of the Balkan Peninsula belong to several ethnic groups of diverse cultural background. In this study, three ethnic groups from Bosnia and Herzegovina - Bosniacs, Bosnian Croats and Bosnian Serbs - as well as the populations of Serbians, Croatians, Macedonians from the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Montenegrins and Kosovars have been characterized for the genetic variation of 660 000 genome-wide autosomal single nucleotide polymorphisms and for haploid markers. New autosomal data of the 70 individuals together with previously published data of 20 individuals from the populations of the Western Balkan region in a context of 695 samples of global range have been analysed. Comparison of the variation data of autosomal and haploid lineages of the studied Western Balkan populations reveals a concordance of the data in both sets and the genetic uniformity of the studied populations, especially of Western South-Slavic speakers. The genetic variation of Western Balkan populations reveals the continuity between the Middle East and Europe via the Balkan region and supports the scenario that one of the major routes of ancient gene flows and admixture went through the Balkan Peninsula.     

Molecular phylogeny and distribution of three Apodemus species (Muridae, Rodentia) in Serbia

Phylogenetic relationships among three species of the genus Apodemus ( A. flavicollis, A. sylvaticus and A. agrarius ) from seven different localities in Serbia were estimated using arbitrarily primed PCR (AP-PCR) profiling, which allowed clear distinction between the sibling species A. flavicollis and A. sylvaticus . Eight oligonucleotide primers out of the 22 screened, gained a total of 397 amplified bands. The average pairwise genetic distances within Apodemus species ranged from 0.51 between A. flavicollis and A. sylvaticus , to 0.74 between A. sylvaticus and A. agrarius. The large genetic distances obtained among populations of A. flavicollis (0.13) indicate that this part of the Balkan Peninsula was probably a refuge during the last glaciation. Furthermore, differences obtained between populations south and north from the river Danube suggest that this species survived the Last Glacial Maximum in at least two separate refuges. Although our data for molecular markers are from a limited number of localities, extended analyses of C-band distribution on chromosomes from previously studied localities south of the rivers Danube and Sava, indicate that distribution of A. sylvaticus is limited to northern Serbia. Therefore, it is possible that this part of the Balkan Peninsula was not a refuge for this species during the last glaciation.     

Mitochondrial DNA perspective of Serbian genetic diversity

Although south‐Slavic populations have been studied to date from various aspects, the population of Serbia, occupying the central part of the Balkan Peninsula, is still genetically understudied at least at the level of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) variation. We analyzed polymorphisms of the first and the second mtDNA hypervariable segments (HVS‐I and HVS‐II) and informative coding‐region markers in 139 Serbians to shed more light on their mtDNA variability, and used available data on other Slavic and neighboring non‐Slavic populations to assess their interrelations in a broader European context. The contemporary Serbian mtDNA profile is consistent with the general European maternal landscape having a substantial proportion of shared haplotypes with eastern, central, and southern European populations. Serbian population was characterized as an important link between easternmost and westernmost south‐Slavic populations due to the observed lack of genetic differentiation with all other south‐Slavic populations and its geographical positioning within the Balkan Peninsula. An increased heterogeneity of south Slavs, most likely mirroring turbulent demographic events within the Balkan Peninsula over time (i.e., frequent admixture and differential introgression of various gene pools), and a marked geographical stratification of Slavs to south‐, east‐, and west‐Slavic groups, were also found. A phylogeographic analyses of 20 completely sequenced Serbian mitochondrial genomes revealed not only the presence of mtDNA lineages predominantly found within the Slavic gene pool (U4a2a*, U4a2a1, U4a2c, U4a2g, HV10), supporting a common Slavic origin, but also lineages that may have originated within the southern Europe (H5*, H5e1, H5a1v) and the Balkan Peninsula in particular (H6a2b and L2a1k). Am J Phys Anthropol 156:449–465, 2015. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.